Shades of Red
by ClairvoyantMarauder
Summary: What kind of world did they live in when the World Government felt threatened by children? It was a question she'd asked herself many times over the years. And now she found herself wondering it again, days after her own island had been attacked years later, looking for the child of yet another pirate they deemed dangerous. A child who had done nothing except exist. Rated T
1. Prologue

_A/N: *Hiding* So I know most were probably expecting an update on LAST CHANCE by now... but this idea just wouldn't leave me alone, so... I'm just gonna drop it right here. I'm not sure when I'm going to update this one, I would like to focus on finishing up the newest chapter for LAST CHANCE and then I really need to come up with some sort of schedule to stick to... But until then you guys can find updates at SinclairCharlot on twitter, which I started so that everyone doesn't keep spamming the inbox here on FF asking me questions about the stories/characters/when updates will be. I just think it will be easier to keep everyone up to date through that platform._

 _Oh, and there's a poll up on my profile! You guys should go check it out and vote._

 _Now then, onto the prologue to SHADES OF RED_

 **PROLOGUE**

It was on nights like this, quiet, peaceful nights on the sea and under the stars, during the late hours of the night when the thoughts crept in. Memories that she tried so hard not to recall, a life that had been left behind so many weeks before when Marines swarmed a tiny island looking for something - someone - that they deemed dangerous.

What kind of world did they live in when the World Government felt threatened by children? It was a question she'd asked herself many times over the years, the first when the World Government ran wild searching for the child of Gold Roger - a child they weren't even sure existed. And now she found herself wondering it again, days after her own island had been attacked years later, looking for the child of yet another pirate they deemed dangerous.

A child who had done nothing except exist.

A smile tugged at the woman's lips. Well, the joke was on them, wasn't it? Her children were all fine - all four of them. Three of them may not have been hers by blood but she knows deep in her soul that the Marines would have killed them just the same as they would have her beautiful little girl. And now they were safe, being shipped off to different places by a man - a Marine - she knew she could trust. She could only hope they would all find each other again one day.

One to the west, one to north, one to the south, and her daughter to the east. Only fate would decide if their paths would ever cross again. But she liked to believe so.

"You are much too happy for a woman facing execution in a few hours."

"Grayson." Green eyes met brown and the two blondes stared at one another. "Of course I am happy. My time is over, but they will flourish and one day shake the world to its core."

"Lilianna, I can still get you away. Just say the word. I can take you to him. To Red-Hair."

"No," Lilianna shook her head. "You've done too much aready. You sent my children off with people you trust. You've ensured they will be safe, even if I find some of your choices more... questionable than others."

"You mean Garp. And I understand your hesitation, but you know that Garp and Roger were friends. He'll keep your girl safe. She's only a year younger than his grandson, and only people from the island would ever know that they're not really siblings."

"You wonder why I decided to send her to East Blue."

"You should have sent her to her father."

"He wouldn't sail with her. He doesn't believe children belong on pirate ships. He doesn't even know about her. I never could find the right way to tell him. He would be a good father, I know that. But it would also be a distraction. And on the seas a distraction is dangerous. It's why I told him we had to stop seeing each other."

"He deserves to know."

"I agree. And she knows who he is. I told her everything about him. His name, what he does, what he looks like, things about his crew. I told her everything just in case she ever wanted to meet him."

"But if she can't find him - "

"The last I heard from him, he was heading to East Blue until some heat from his last stunt goes down."

"Heh..." her brother smirked. "So that's why you were so adamant about us sending her to East Blue. The odds of them coming across each other just got a lot better. I guess you learned that from our dear little brother?"

"Are you asking as a concerned family member or as a Marine?"

"Damnit Lily, don't start doing that."

Ignoring him, his sister began to hum. Grayson forced his irritation down and sighed before plopping down on the deck next to her. He leaned his head back and gazed up at the stars, listening to the sound of her voice. Her hands were cuffed in front of her - Sea Prism Stone, due to her Devil Fruit powers - but one hand shifted ever so slightly to sit lightly on top of his. He stiffened, but only for a minute, before relaxing with a large sigh.

 _... Gather up all of the crew_

 _It's time to ship out Binks' brew_

 _Wave goodbye, but don't you cry_

 _Our memories remain_

 _Our days are but a passing dream_

 _Everlasting though they seem_

 _Beneath the moon, we'll meet again_

 _The wind's our lullaby..._

"That red haired idiot always did love that song," Grayson murmured, eyes shining with unshed tears.

"We all did," Lilianna corrected. "Him, the Cap'n, that moron Buggy, you and me."

"Those days are over," Grayson said gruffly. "But damn if I don't miss them."

Liliana smiled. "Never would have pegged you to go the straight and narrow route. But then again, no one ever did figure out we were on Roger's crew. Shanks, Buggy and I didn't even have bounties until after we'd all set out on our own. Guess you got lucky."

"I guess." Grayson went silent. "Lily, let me get you out of this. Please."

"No, Gray. This is the path you've chosen to walk, and I've chosen mine. Don't taint what you've built yourself into. You've worked hard to become a good marine. Don't fuck it up for me."

"It's hard. You're family."

"It's not meant to be easy." Lilianna smiled. "If it was always easy then nothing would be worth achieving. If you make a scene, try to save me, then all the hard work, all that you've achieved, it would be for nothing. You'd be arrested, executed. I won't let that happen."

"... we should get you back into your cell."

"In a bit," she replied, gaze going back up to the stars. "It's such a lovely night out. I'm glad I got to see one more."

Grayson bit his lip. "Yeah..."

"Don't cry for me, Grayson. It's been a good life. I've known fun and freedom and love. And that makes it all worth it. Tell Atty that I'm sorry."

"I'll be lucky if Atticus doesn't shoot me where I stand the next time he sees me."

"He would never. You're his wonderful big brother."

"Yeah, and you're his big sister. And he loves you more. He never did forgive me for becoming a marine."

"If that's what you think, then you're an idiot," Lilianna sighed. "Well, better take me back."

The first tear finally fell from Grayson's eye. "Yeah."

Her forehead rested against his, tears sparkling in her green eyes. "It'll be all right."

"...Yeah."

Neither mentioned that the other was crying.


	2. Chapter 1: Meeting

_**A/N: hey guys, welcome back to the second chapter of SHADES OF RED. The next chapter of** Last Chance **is coming soon, I promise. I just have a few more tweaks to make and then a final read over by me and my beta and then it'll be out! Updates may continue to be slow on both stories. Starting tomorrow I'm going to be shadowing the vet techs and veterinarians at the nearby animal hospital in preparation to begin a course for veterinary medical assistant, and eventually work up to being a tech myself. Moving forward in the world, finally... and it would not took me a few years! Heheehe... *Sigh***_

 _ **Thanks to** Mind of Heir, Skyla579, Gilgamesh555, Aboffy, Avada-chan, animeluvr4everndalwayz2014, and sdkop21 **for adding this fic to their alerts and favorites.**_

 **ARC I: THE FOUR SIBLINGS**

 **CHAPTER ONE: MEETING**

 **DATE: JULY 15TH**

 **Mirabelle, Age 5**

 _Is it true? Is she the daughter of **that** pirate?_

 _Look at her hair. Look at her **eyes.** She looks just like both of them!_

 _Who'd have thought the infamous Snow Lily would be hiding out on a previously uninhabited island?_

 _All those houses! All of them filled with former pirates. It was a good day for the Marines and World Government. So many arrests, so many criminals off the streets._

 _Should've done away with the brats._

 _We're not savages. We don't kill children._

 _ **Some** of us don't._

 _Ssh! She'll hear you._

The she in question was huddled against the mast, a blanket draped over her shoulders and a small stuffed dog in her grasp. She clung to it so tightly that the adults around her began to wonder if it would rip. Untrusting, sullen green eyes stared up at them from a pale face topped in a messy tumble of red waves. The girl hadn't brushed her hair in days and she refused to touch any of the food the kind faced chef offered her.

Trust no one in marine garbs.

That's what mama had always told her. She had always been good at listening to mama. But then mama had said she could trust these marines. But she didn't want to - they had taken away her mama and her brothers. How could she trust them after that?

"You should eat."

The gruff voice made her looks up at the old man that stood before her. He was tall, with tanned skin, and with graying hair and a beard. He was dressed in the uniform of a Marine Vice Admiral and had a dog looking hat on his head.

 _This is Garp. You can trust him._

That's what her uncle had said. But he was a Marine, too, and mama said not to trust the Marines. But he was her mama's brother, which made him family. And family always protected family, which means he wouldn't send her into danger.

... all this thinking was making her head hurt. Finally, she gave a small nod and reached for the plate he was holding out.

"So how old are you?"

"... five," she mumbled, shoveling a spoonful of rice into her mouth.

"Five's a good age," the marine -Garp - grinned. "My grandsons, one's nine and the other just turned six a couple months back."

The little girl gulped down another large bite of food. "What're their names?"

"The oldest is Ace - he's a tough shelled kid. Doesn't like to show much emotion. The youngest is Luffy, and he's the complete opposite. He's an open book. And your name?"

"Mirabelle."

Garp nodded and was quiet for a moment. "Did your mother tell you where you're going?"

"To Dawn Island to live with Mr. Garp's grandson," Mirabelle parroted.

"That's right," he agreed. "The bar owner keeps an eye on Luffy while I'm away, and Ace stays with some... friends in the mountains. You'll be staying with Luffy and Makino. Won't be long till we get there. Maybe a few more hours."

"Why dont they stay together? They're family, right?"

"It's a complicated situation," Garp said before dropping his hand comfortingly onto her head. "You just sit tight. We'll be there before you know it."

 **xXxXxXxXx**

Dawn Island was small, for lack of a better word - but it was still bigger than the island she had lived on. From this distance, she could make out a small town on the edge of the water and a large looming mountain and forest area. She wasn't sure about any other towns, but the island was big enough to have at least two more, even if they were out of sight.

The villagers had come out to greet them as they docked, but only she and Garp left the ship, with everyone else staying on board.

"Don't get comfortable," Garp had told them. "I'm dropping her off with Makino and then it's back to headquarters."

The bar - Partys Bar - was the only one in the small village. Makino was a young woman and at her side stood a little boy, only a few inches taller than Mirabelle herself. He had messy black hair and was wearing a white shirt with a blue anchor and ANCHOR written in large print across it. He had a large grin on his face, and Mirabelle could hear his joyful laughter from down the road. Despite his cheerfulness, she found herself clutching the stuffed dog toy even tighter in her grip as nerves assaulted her.

"Luffy!" Garp's smile turned dark as his large fist came down on the boy's head. "Have a Fist of Love!"

"Oooowie!"

Eyes wide, Mirabelle stared st the in bewilderment as the boy seemingly laughed off his grandfather's assault.

"Mirabelle!" Garp boomed, turning towards her. "This is Luffy, my grandson! Luffy, this is Mirabelle, your new sister."

Large black eyes roamed over her, considering. "She's little."

Mirabelle's eyebrow twitched. "I'm five."

Luffy's eyes went back to his grandpa. "Can we go play?"

Garp considered for a moment before nodding. "I suppose. I need to be getting back to the ship by now anyway. You be sure to show her around, Luffy, and teach her about the town. You're a big brother now, so you have to keep your little sister safe."

A strange light of determination filled Luffy's eyes. "I will!"

Garp chuckled, nodded forewell to a smiling Makino, and turned on his heels to exit the bar.

A hand slid into hers and Luffy gave it an enthusiastic tug. "C'mon, Mira! I'll show you all the cool places in town and introduce you to everyone."

"...Okay."

Luffy grinned that wide, cheerful grin, shouted a goodbye to Makino, and dragged Mirabelle out of the bar and out onto the dusty streets of Windmill Village.

"This is the fruit stand!" Luffy announced as they stopped at their first destination. "Mr. Lyle runs it, and sometimes his wife helps. Her name is Amelia."

The town flew by in a blur of places and names, far too many for Mirabelle to mmeorize all at once. Finally, they ended up in front of a house that looked just a little bit nicer than the others.

"This is Mayor Woop Slap's House," Luffy whispered. "He's old, and kinda mean, but most of the time he just complains about everything to Makino."

 **xXxXxXxXx**

 **DATE: JULY 25th**

 **Mirabelle, Age 5**

"Hey, Mira, what do you think of pirates?" Luffy asked one day.

The little girl looked at her brother, startled. "Uh... they're cool, I guess. Better than the Marines."

Luffy nodded sagely. "Yeah! Marines stink! So... what if I told you that I wanna be the King of the Pirates?"

Green eyes widened. "What's that?"

"You've never heard of the King of the Pirates?!" Luffy yelled in surprise, drawing the attention of many of the bars patrons. "That's crazy! You had to have at least heard about the _One Piece_!"

"... No..." Mirabelle drawed out, staring at the floor.

Luffy gasped. "Oh man! Hey, Makino! You gotta tell Mira the story!"

Makino smiles gently. "Okay, let's see... many years ago, a pirate named Gold Roger sailed the seas. The stories about him vary greatly, some say he was a kind man, others say that he was ruthless. But all the stories agree on one thing - Gold Roger had obtained all the riches imaginable in the world, including the fabled treasure known as the _One Piece_ , which is why people began to call him the King of the Pirates. About oh... ten or eleven years or so ago, Gold Roger disbanded his crew and turned himself over to the Marines for reasons unknown. The day of his execution, when asked his final words, he made an announcement that would shake the world."

Luffy bounced excitedly in his seat.

" _You want my treasure? You can have it! I left everything I gathered together in one place! You just have to find it..._ Those words drive hundreds if not thousands of people to take on the seas. Stories say that Gold Roger's treasure can be found on the island of Raftel, the very last island at the end of the Grand Line. But no one has found it yet."

"Well _I'm_ going to!" Luffy announced. "I'm gonna be King of the Pirates!"

It was as if something shifted in the air, and Mirabelle could only stare at Lufy in shock. The sureness and conviction mixed with the carefree way he announced the words - as if it was no big deal all added up to one emotion and thought filtering through her tiny five year old brain.

Belief.

 **xXxXxXxXx**

 **DATE: August 14th**

 **Mirabelle, Age 5**

Perhaps the worst thing about staying in Windmill Village was the way some of the villagers would look at her - and seeing the way other children looked at Luffy. Thanks to Garp's influence, Luffy was obnoxiously strong for his young age, and it often left the other kids not wanting to roughhouse or play because Luffy wasn't good at holding back his strength.

With Mirabelle, it was different. It had started during a rousing game of tag, which she had cajoled the other children into letting Luffy play by throwing a rather fantastic fake tantrum. Mirabelle and Luffy we're sprinting down the streets of the town away from Silas when the brown hair boy reached out and snagged the back of her shirt.

With a shrieking laugh, she tore away, but his hand held fast to necklace around her neck, causing the chain to snap and the carved stone to go flying.

"Oops, sorry!" Silas apologized immediately. "I broke your necklace, Mira!"

She stared at the stone on the ground, eyes wide. She tended suddenly, as of waiting for something to happen.

 _Never take this off, Mira. You can't control your changes. You don't want to accidentally hurt people. Only take it off for practice._

And she had kept that promise like a child her age would keep a cherished toy. But the second it had snapped, she had been ready to shift, to lose control.

But nothing had happened. Her mother had been wrong. She wasn't going to hurt anyone! She was finally getting the hang of this stupid Devil Fruit she had eaten.

"Mira?"

"It's all right," she said finally. "It was just a stupid piece of rock. I don't need it anymore."

She felt free in a way she hadn't since the day her mother had insisted she eat the fruit for her own protection, nearly a year ago now. The fruit had tasted disgusting - like water that had had dirty socks soaking it and with a bunch of other disgusting things mixed in, like rotten eggs and expired milk. She had refused to take more than one bite, but that was all that was needed for the power of the Devil Fruit to take root in her tiny body.

At first, they weren't sure anything had happened. Then two days later, Mirabelle had shifted forms in her sleep. The lack of control had scared her mother, so much so that she had had the Sea Prism Stone necklace carved into the shape of a paw print for her daughter to wear at all times. _No exceptions._

 _But now she was_ **free.**

"You sure, Belle?" Luffy asked, concerned.

"I'm sure. Now c'mon! I'm it!"

"PIRATES!"

The shout had every child freezing as old man Archie ran by, pale as a ghost.

"PIRATES ARE DOCKING! IT'S THE _RED HURRICANE!_ "

 _The Red Hurricane? The... Red Hair Pirates. Yassop, the sniper. Lucky Roux, the cook. Benn Beckman, the first mate. Atticus the chronicler. Red Haired Shanks, the captain._

 _Shanks._

 _ **Dad.**_

"Wow, real pirates!" Luffy exclaimed. "Mira, c'mon, let's go see!"

Dazed, Mirabelle let Luffy take her hand and drag her in the direction of the docks. Her mind was racing - her mother had told her everything about her father and his crew, but she had neglected to teach Mirabelle one thing.

How to tell a man that didn't know you existed that you were his daughter.

 _Mama, I don't know what to do..._

 _ **A/N: and that settles that chapter! I've decided to start doing little fun facts at the end of the chapters of both stories, to sort of show things that were nixxed before the story came to be what it is.**_

 _ **FUN FACT: originally, Mirabelle was a young boy named Noah. That got nixxed pretty quickly. And then Mirabelle was an adorable little brown haired girl affectionately named Olivia. Then the name was Aaliyah. And finally Mirabelle. I think it fits much better.**_

 _ **Till next time!!**_


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